This invention relates generally to apparatus and methods used for mounting electronic equipment. Specifically, the present invention provides improved methods and apparatus for mounting electronic equipment in a cabinet, supplying power to the equipment, and supporting the housing, and routing electrical conduit within the housing.
In the electronics industry, electronic equipment is typically mounted in enclosures or cabinets to facilitate installation, interfacing with related equipment, and to facilitate access by technicians for servicing and repair. One recognized standard enclosure used by electronic equipment manufacturers is the 19-inch standard for mounting electronic equipment or sub chassis into an enclosure. The 19-inch enclosure standard is defined by the Electronics Industries Association standard EIA310. The EIA310 standard, which is incorporated by reference herein, defines the specifications for the mounting of 19-inch panels and equipment. In compliance with this standard, electronic equipment manufacturers provide products, for example, computers or computer peripheral equipment, that are mountable or installable into 19-inch enclosures, cabinets, or racks, as they are referred to in the art.
Conventional electronic equipment racks include some form of frame or support structure upon which the equipment is mounted, typically by mechanical fasteners. This frame provides the structural support of the equipment while providing access to electrical conduit, that is, wires and cables, for power and data transfer. Panels, typically sheet metal or plastic are typically mounted to the frame to protect the equipment and to provide an aesthetically pleasing appearance to the cabinet.
Conventional cabinets or racks typically include some form of casters mounted on the bottom of the cabinet for facilitating installation, removal, and servicing of the equipment mounted in the rack. Conventional cabinets may also include some form of seismic support for preventing vibration damage to the equipment or toppling of the cabinets during an earthquake. In conventional equipment racks, casters and seismic supports are typically mounted to a sheet metal plate secured to the bottom of the cabinet. However, the mounting of the casters and seismic supports to the thin sheet metal of the cabinet is somewhat prone to damaging the sheet metal or failure of the caster or support during transport, handling, or vibration loading (for example, an earthquake). There is a need in the art to provide improved structural stiffness and strength to the mounting of casters and seismic supports to cabinets holding electronic equipment.
As would be expected, electronic equipment cabinets typically also contain numerous electrical conduits, that is, wires and cables, for power and data transfer. However, depending upon the equipment in the cabinet the number of conduits may be quite numerous and unwieldy. The presence of many exposed conduits, even when properly secured, can interfere with the installation and servicing of the cabinet as well as be prone to damage during installation and servicing. There is a need in the art to provide electronic equipment cabinets in which such cabling can be secured and possibly hidden to facilitate installation and servicing.
One electronic component that is typically installed in conventional electronic equipment cabinets is a power input unit, that is, the unit or component that receives electric power from an external source, such as a power outlet, and through which power is provided to the equipment in the cabinet. The power input unit may include some form of power conditioning if necessary. In conventional electronic equipment cabinets, the power input unit is typically located within the cabinet, that is, behind a panel or sheet metal barrier and thus not readily accessible to the operator or technician. Thus, in order to access the power input unit, a panel or barrier must be removed. This can be inconvenient when attempting to install, service, or simply access the power input unit. In addition, locating the power input unit within the envelope of the cabinet can consume valuable space within the cabinet that could be used for other equipment. There is also a need in the art to facilitate access to the power input unit of an electronic equipment cabinet, or to more advantageously use the space within the equipment cabinet.
These and other deficiencies of the prior art equipment cabinets are addressed by the present invention.
The present invention provides methods and apparatus which address many of the limitations of prior art methods and apparatus. One aspect of the invention is a cabinet for mounting electronic equipment comprising a rectangular cylindrical frame having a top, a bottom, and sides, and means for supporting the cabinet, the frame comprising vertical support members and horizontal support members, wherein the means for supporting the cabinet are mounted to at least one of the horizontal support members.
In one aspect of the invention, the at least one of the horizontal support members is located adjacent the bottom of the cabinet and the means for supporting the cabinet are mounted to at least one of the horizontal support members located adjacent the bottom of the housing. In another aspect of the invention, the means for supporting the cabinet comprises one at least one caster, at least one seismic support, or a combination of at least one caster and at least one seismic support. In one aspect of the invention, the means for supporting the cabinet comprises a plurality of casters or a plurality of seismic supports.
Another aspect of the invention is a cabinet for mounting electronic equipment comprising a rectangular cylindrical frame having a top, a bottom, sides, and casters for supporting the housing, the frame comprising vertical support members and horizontal support members, wherein the casters are mounted directly to at least one of the horizontal support members. The casters are typically mounted to one of the horizontal support members located at the bottom of the housing.
Another aspect of the present invention is a cabinet for mounting electronic equipment comprising a rectangular cylindrical frame having a top, a bottom, sides, and at least one seismic support for supporting the housing and minimizing the vibration load on the equipment, the frame comprising vertical support members and horizontal support members, wherein the at least one seismic support is mounted directly to at least one of the horizontal support members. Typically, the at least one seismic support is mounted to one of the horizontal support members located at the bottom of the housing.
Another aspect of the invention is a method for supporting an electronic equipment cabinet, the cabinet having a frame comprising at least one horizontal member, the method comprising: providing means for supporting the cabinet; and mounting the means for supporting the cabinet to the at least one horizontal member of the frame. In one aspect of this invention, providing means for supporting the cabinet comprises providing at least one of at least one caster and at least one seismic support. In another aspect of this invention, the electronic equipment cabinet has a top and a bottom and the frame comprises at least one horizontal member positioned adjacent the bottom of the cabinet, wherein mounting the means for supporting the cabinet comprises mounting the means for supporting the cabinet to the at least one horizontal member positioned adjacent the bottom of the cabinet.
A further aspect of the invention is a supporting arrangement for an electronic equipment cabinet, the cabinet comprising a cylindrical frame having a top and a bottom, at least one panel mounted to the frame, and at least one leveling device, the frame comprising vertical support members and horizontal support members, wherein the support arrangement comprises a supporting element mounted to a horizontal support member positioned adjacent the bottom of the frame. In one aspect of the invention, the supporting element comprises at least one caster. In another aspect of the invention, the supporting element comprises at least one seismic support. In one aspect of the invention, the frame comprises at least one L-shaped support member having a horizontal leg and a vertical leg. In another aspect of the invention, the supporting element comprises at least one caster or at least one seismic support mounted to the horizontal leg of the L-shaped support member.
Another aspect of the invention is a cabinet for mounting electronic equipment comprising a rectangular cylindrical frame having a top, bottom, and sides, the frame comprising vertical support members and horizontal support members, wherein at least one of the support members comprises at least one recess for installing electrical conduit, for example, electrical wires and electrical cables and the like. In one aspect of the invention, the at least one recess in the at least one support member comprises a longitudinal recess. In another aspect of the invention, the vertical support members comprise at least one vertical support member having a first recess and the horizontal support members comprise at least one horizontal support member having a second recess, wherein the first and second recesses communicate with each other. In another aspect of the invention, the frame further comprises at least one support member connecting element and wherein the first and second recesses communicate with each other via the at least one support member connecting element.
Another aspect of the invention is a method for routing at least one electrical conduit in an electronic equipment cabinet, the cabinet comprising a frame comprising at least one horizontal or vertical member having a longitudinal recess, the method comprising routing the at least one cable in the longitudinal recess. In one aspect of the invention, the frame comprises at least one horizontal member having a longitudinal recess and at least one vertical member having a longitudinal recess, and the method comprises routing the at least one cable through the longitudinal recess of the at least one horizontal member and through the longitudinal recess of the at least one vertical member. In another aspect of the invention, the frame further comprises at least one connecting element between the at least one horizontal member and the at least one vertical member, the at least one connecting element having a recess, and wherein the method comprises routing the at least one cable through the longitudinal recess of the at least one horizontal member, through the recess of the at least one connecting element, and through the longitudinal recess of the at least one vertical member.
Another aspect of the invention is a cabinet for mounting electronic equipment comprising a rectangular cylindrical frame having a top, bottom, and sides, the frame defining an internal cavity, and at least one power input unit for supplying power to at least some of the electronic equipment, wherein the at least one power input unit is mounted outside of the internal cavity. In one aspect of the invention, the at least one power input unit is mounted below the bottom of the frame.
Another aspect of the invention is a method of providing at least one power input unit to an electronic equipment cabinet, the cabinet comprising a support frame and the support frame defining an internal cavity of the electronic equipment cabinet, the method comprising: providing a power input unit; providing a power input unit interface for the electronic equipment cabinet positioned outside the internal cavity of the electronic equipment cabinet; and installing the power input unit in the power input unit interface. In one aspect of the invention, the electronic equipment cabinet further comprises at least one panel mounted to the frame, and wherein installing the power input unit comprises installing the power input unit without removing any panels from the electronic equipment cabinet. In another aspect of the invention, the support frame has a top and a bottom, wherein providing a power input unit interface comprises providing a power input unit interface below the bottom of the frame.
A further aspect of the invention is a trim piece mounting for an electronic equipment cabinet, the cabinet comprising a frame having at least one mounting surface, the trim piece mounting comprising: an elongated member having an inner surface and an outer surface; and means for attaching the elongated member to the mounting surface of the frame. In one aspect of the invention, the mounting surface of the frame comprises a perforated mounting surface and wherein the means of attaching the elongated member to the mounting surface comprises at least one projection located on the inner surface of the elongated member. In another aspect of the invention, the means for attaching the elongated member comprises at least one spacerthe at least one spacer comprising means for attaching the at least one spacer to the mounting surface of the frame and means for attaching the elongated member to the at least one spacer. In another aspect of the invention, the mounting surface on the frame comprises a plurality of threaded holes and the means for attaching the at least one spacer to the mounting surface comprises a threaded projection on the at least one spacer.
A still further aspect of the invention is a method of mounting a trim piece to an electronic equipment cabinet having a mounting surface, the method comprising: providing at least one spacer having a main body portion and a recess positioned in the main body portion; providing a trim piece having at least one extension engagable with the recess; mounting the at least one spacer to the mounting surface of the cabinet; and attaching the trim piece to the at least one spacer wherein the at least one extension engages the recess in the spacer. In one aspect of the invention, the mounting surface comprises a plurality of perforations, wherein mounting the at least one spacer to the mounting surface comprises engaging the at least one spacer with the plurality of perforations. In another aspect of the invention, the plurality of perforations comprises a plurality of threaded perforations and the at least one spacer comprises at least one threaded end, wherein mounting the at least one spacer to the mounting surface comprises threading the at least one threaded end of the spacer into the plurality of threaded perforations.
An even further aspect of the invention is a trim piece attachable to a mounting surface of an electronic equipment cabinet, the trim piece comprising: an elongated flexible member having an inner surface and an outer surface; and at least one extension on the inner surface for attaching the elongated flexible member to the mounting surface of the frame. In one aspect of the invention, the at least one extension comprises at least two elongated flexible extensions. In another aspect of the invention, the mounting surface comprises at least one spacer mounted to the mounting surface, and wherein the at least two elongated flexible extensions comprise at least two elongated flexible extensions having transverse projections, the transverse projections engagable with the at least one spacer.
The present invention addresses many of the limitations of the prior art including providing a secure support for the cabinet casters and seismic supports, providing recesses for the routing of electrical conduit, providing an easily accessible power input unit, and providing easily installable and removable trim pieces, that among, other things, provide a more pleasing appearance to the equipment cabinet. These and other embodiments and aspects of the present invention will become more apparent upon review of the attached drawings, description below, and attached claims.